Tunisian protestors mobilise against US support for Gaza war
Tunisia’s Joint Coordination for Palestine has called on citizens to encircle the US Embassy in Tunis, denouncing what it describes as Washington’s “complicit support” for Israel’s genocide in Gaza, as reported by The New Arab plus agencies on July 22nd.
The coalition issued its appeal under the slogan: “For Gaza, let us besiege the Embassy of Death!”, reflecting growing outrage over Israel’s military onslaught that has killed more than 59,000 Palestinians.
Although, in a rare occasion considering Tunisian President Kais Saied’s suppression of protests, Saied and Tunisian protestors were of the same mind after he condemned Israel’s assault on Gaza during talks with US senior adviser Massad Boulos.
Saied called the “atrocities” against Palestinians “absolutely unacceptable” and presented photos showing what he described as Israeli “crimes,” especially those harming children. He labelled the blockade-induced hunger a “crime against humanity,” insisting the images proved the occupation’s brutality.
Israeli forces continue to isolate Gaza, blocking aid, sealing borders, and killing civilians seeking food. Bombardments have obliterated Gaza’s healthcare system. In its statement, the group declared: “Enough silence in the face of genocide.” It labelled the 21-month assault “a war of extermination and mass starvation,” accusing the US of providing “blatant and absolute” support.
The group now urges Tunisians to launch a multi-day sit-in outside the heavily fortified embassy. They demand mass mobilisation: “Let the streets of Tunis become an extension of Khan Younis, Gaza, and Rafah. Let us besiege the sponsors of death.”
This wave of solidarity has intensified across Tunisia, with rallies erupting beyond campuses and unions. Demonstrators have confronted security forces outside Western embassies and Israeli-linked institutions.
Now, as the group prepares a maritime initiative, the Somoud Flotilla, it escalates its protest tactics, demanding the blockade of the embassy: “the backer of the executioner, the one who arms him, and the one who withholds medicine and water.”
Activist Ghassan Ben Khelifa insisted: “The United States is the only power capable of stopping the genocide in Gaza.” He urged broader civil resistance targeting US institutions: “Only when its strategic interests are threatened… might [the US] reconsider.”
The New Arab plus agencies, Maghrebi.org, Xinhua News Agency
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